24/02/2017 Midlands Today

Hello and welcome to Midlands Today. - so it's goodbye from me -

The headlines tonight: The new Labour MP for

Stoke-on-Trent Central, Gareth Snell, promises

to deliver on Brexit, education and homes.

Whatever be doing now as a member of parliament is going around the

country and selling Stoke-on-Trent is a wonderful place that it it.

But what now for Ukip as they fail in their bid to turn Stoke Central

Tributes paid to Tahnie Martin, the 29-year-old died

after being hit by falling debris, during storm force

If's terrible. She's 29, she has not seen the world or dumb things. You

could cry, couldn't you? -- or done things.

Tricky times for our Championship clubs, with all four West Midlands

The delicate art of embroidery, a world-renowned Warwickshire

seamstress encouraging a new generation.

And things have been very different today with the weather,

but it's a return to wet and windy conditions

Standing up for Stoke-on Trent, that's the promise from the City's

newest MP, Gareth Snell, who held the Labour seat

of Stoke-on-Trent Central with just over 7,800 votes.

But the party's majority was cut by almost half, to 2,620 votes.

Ukip's leader Paul Nuttall came second with 5,233 votes,

just 79 ahead of Conservative candidate Jack Brereton.

It was a major blow to Ukip, who hoped the pro-Brexit vote

would result in victory and the party's second MP.

Our Staffordshire reporter Sian Grzsysck has been getting reaction.

Have report contains flashing images.

BBC Radio Stoke, if you're waking up, Gareth Snell has won.

A new day and a new MP for Stoke central.

It was business as usual for most in the city centre,

but there was plenty to digest for the winners and losers

of what proved to be a tough political fight.

And Last night the new Labour MP admitted it hadn't been

Feeling very happy about the fact that the Labour Party has been able

to hold this seat. It was a tough election, but ultimately the people

of Stoke, Stoke-on-Trent made their voice heard and I'm very glad to be

going to Parliament to represent them.

All Ukip's leader could do was to try and appear positive

in the midst of what was clearly a painful failure.

We have cut their majority in half. We have unified the party like never

before. We will go forward now and we will look. Ukip's time will come.

This will happen. This should been a very easy win for Labour. They've

helped this seat since it was created back in 1950. A challenging

win, but a disastrous results for these guys, Ukip, they thought they

would be celebrating here today. Today they are facing tough

questions. If they can't win here in appropriate city, where can they

win? The fact that is Paul Nuttall thought he could get in and then has

the cheek to say it is only 72nd market list, how disrespectful of

the local people can you be? -- on our hit list. I'm disappointed. I

wanted Ukip in. I wanted change. And so is been a strong Labour seat and

his policies like I said are not what I voted for.

Stoke saw a lot of the labour leader in the run up to this by-election

and today he returned, clearly relieved to have hung

on here, after a bruising defeat in the other by-election

I tell you what happened yesterday, people came out, worked, knocked on

doors. They delivered a message. It is a message about the economy. It

is the message about gods. It is a message -- jobs. It is a message

about this country. Of course, many people today

were just focussed on enjoying the rest of half term with the kids,

but the by election was still on their minds

at stoke's ski centre. It would have been a shock had they

not one. What they need to do now is work on pulling everyone together.

Need to do some things to get the majority back up, I think. Get some

trust back on the people. And, like the whole campaign,

doing that might continue to be I spoke to Stoke Central's new MP,

Gareth Snell, a little earlier. I asked him what his priorities

are for his constituents. As I said during the election

campaign, my priorities will be to make sure that we get

the Brexit deal. For Stone-onTrent that we

need and we deserve, such as education,

homes, we have got lots of Brownfield sites

in Stoke-on-Trent that are ripe

for development, but also challenging the Government to make

sure we get A voter turnout of just

a little over 36%, why do you think the voters

were so apathetic? I think the storm Doris had

a little bit to do with But this has historically

had a low turnout and that is not something that I am

content to let lie now. One of the issues that

I will be taking forward over the next three

years is looking at how we can really engage

with civil society, how

we can give a clear, Labour Party which means in 2020

at the general election people are actually coming out

to support the Labour Party. How are you going to do that

because you got quite a big bit What we showed in this campaign

is that when the Labour Party campaigns on issues that matters

to local people, some of which are outside our comfort

zone, we can resonate. this process over the next three

years, we can increase the Labour share of the vote, but also we can

increase turnout overall. What about that

share of the vote? Is it that Labour won

or that Ukip lost? I think the fact that I'll

be going to London on Monday to represent Stoke-on-Trent

in Parliament is a clear sign that Ukip through the kitchen sink

at this election, they threw money, they had a flash, slick

campaign, they had national leaders up and down the country

campaigning for them here in Stoke-on-Trent

and they only increased their vote here

in Stoke-on-Trent by just over 2%. For me, what that shows is

that the politics that Ukip offer to You spent some time

with Jeremy Corbyn this afternoon Does he have your 100%

backing as Labour leader? Jeremy is the leader of the party

and I will be working as hard as I can now to make sure we win

the general election in 2020 Does he have your 100%

backing as Labour leader? I'm not going to put percentages on,

but Jeremy is the leader. He has my support and I want to see

him as Prime Minister in 2020 He is somebody that you have

previously described Previously, I was making comment

on the fact that the Labour Party was in danger of eating itself alive

during the leadership election. Jeremy was elected with a clear

mandate by the people And as I said, he came

and campaigned for me yesterday in Stoke-on-Trent and now

it is my job to campaign for Jeremy to be

prime ministers the next general election.

Our Political Editor Patrick Burns is in Stoke for us now.

Patrick Gareth Snell was evasive about giving his full backing

in Copeland by election, what does this say about the state

Very interesting, those comments that you drew from him there. Yes

this result here in Stoke Central was much better for Labour than that

one up there in Copeland, but you could put them both together and

they have one thing in common. After seven years of Tory led Government

in which Labour preserve the relentless focus of... The

Conservative's evidence is actually strengthening rather than weakening.

I can tell you that the disquiet over the Jeremy Corbyn leadership is

not just amongst the usual suspects on the so-called moderate Labour

benches who triggered that leadership challenge last summer, it

extends to those on the left who would be his natural sympathisers.

They are in a very sad mood at the moment. You will have seen a few by

elections. Have you seen so much attention on the party who came

second? How much of a problem is this for Ukip? Remarkable. If they

can't win here, Brexit Central, where can they win? Now they are

saying it was only 72nd on their list. It is very serious and two by

the recriminations begin. The MEP is saying that Paul Nuttall's advisors

behind this campaign should be sacked. Labour concentrated their

campaign on the health service. Do you think that Brexit is beginning

to fade away as a major political issue in Stoke? On the contrary. If

you can buy me Tory and Ukip votes, you will get 10,500, which is way

more than Labour got. I think this is another worry for Ukip.

Conservatives are saying that we other party a project now, drawing

further support for the Conservatives.

And Patrick will have more on the election

result on Sunday Politics, at the usual time of

The woman who was killed by falling debris in storm force winds

in Wolverhampton yesterday, has been named as Tahnie Martin.

The 29-year-old was struck on the head in the City Centre.

Staff at Wolverhampton University, where she worked, described her

as irrepressibly optimistic, kind and full of ideas.

At the spot where she collapsed, passers by genuinely shocked,

bewildered by the death so sudden and violent at a moment

so simple and commonplace, walking along a street with friends.

It is a shame for her and her family.

Just looking at her face, you could cry, couldn't you?

There is a lot of community spirit and more the Hampton and she is

You can see by all the flowers there.

29-year-old Tahnie Lee Martin from Stafford was killed instantly,

struck on the head by a wooden panel whipped from a building

Tahnie was on with two colleagues from the university

of Wolverhampton where she worked, they were treated in hospital

In Smethwick destruction but relief no-one was hurt when a poplar tree

80-feet tall crashed into the roof of a leisure centre.

Six people using the gym at the time were at the other end of the room.

It is almost certain we're going to have to crane

that off and it'll take some time to sort that out.

We also had some trees come down in the borough yesterday alone,

so we will need to prioritise the ones that we need to sort first.

Here is another of those downed trees.

This time on top of a daycare centre.

It was half term, but there were four children inside.

In Birmingham's jewellery quarter another casualty of Doris,

the top of this Victorian building caught on CCTV crashing

It was halfway through either repair or

refurbishment, but to see that the winds have taken it, I'm

A bit of history just lost to the wind.

In Wolverhampton, the investigation into Tahnie Martin's

The police, the council and health and safety

officials working together to establish who owns

Storm Doris continued to cause problems for commuters today,

as Birmingham's cross city line was suspended all day.

It meant replacement bus services for many,

Bob Hockenhull reports on the impact.

Battling to land at Birmingham Airport at the height of the storm.

80-mile-per hour winds testing the nerves of pilot and passengers.

Once the winds subsided, it was trains not planes

still suffering in the aftermath of Storm Doris.

The Redditch to Lichfield line through Birmingham completely

shut for a second day, engineers still carrying out repairs

at multiple locations along the track.

We've got 14 trapped trains on the line.

Network Rail have to get out and repair

Network Rail have to get out and repair the overhead lines

We need to get the trains out of the way and then they

need to go back again to assess the rest of the damage, make those

One of those stranded trains still stuck in Selly Oak

Unsuspecting passengers were still turning up to find any

hopes of travelling along the line dashed.

I'm trying to get to Durham to visit my sister and obviously

there are no trains here, so I will have to get an Uber

as opposed to ?1.60 which usually it would be to New Street.

I checked this morning, it had no problems.

Well there is a train parked on the platform.

In the past half-hour, it has been announced that they have finished

work sooner than expected. It is now open.

But one group of children had a narrow escape after the roof

of the clubhouse at Knowle FC was ripped off,

Luckily no one was hurt, but it's left the club

Nicola Beckford is there this evening, Nicola,

It was terrifying. I spoke to some of the young people who were here

yesterday. About 11 o'clock and 35 of them were inside the clubhouse.

You can see it behind me. Some are outside putting on their football

boots. Huge gust of wind ripped the roof. Ali is but Albee. This is what

he told me. Was like talking to my friend and it was like, what is

happening? I don't know what is happening! It is the end of the

world expect we are doomed expect! happening! It is the end of the

world expect we are doomed You're from the club, tummy more about what

happened? I got a call round about 11 o'clock and write it was in a

devastation. There were children, some sobbing, somewhat excitable.

They were all very well looked after by the coaches who were here. The

code should actually had to bring the children out, escort them out of

the building here. Without those, Ronnie, Kerry and Nicole, there

could well have been a terrible tragedy here. They did to refit job.

They told me earlier that they have been practising for this kind of

event. -- terrific event. I have heard that as well. The way the roof

came off, it is gone off at the back. It disturbs the pitch over

there. What is the future for you? We're hoping to get the roof

replaced, but we don't know what is going to happen. We have very

limited resources here and we just cannot at the moment say what is

going to happen. I will leave it there thank you for talking to us.

At least the children are safe. There will not be any matches played

here, they are hoping to get back to normal as soon as boss.

We had so many pictures and reports from viewers yesterday about damage

caused by storm Doris, thank you for those.

Rebecca was out in the thick of things, and is here now.

What were the strongest recorded gusts?

Yes, Mary this was a reading that I took up on the

Staffordshire Moorlands, gusts of 77.7 miles per hour.

Obviously, I'm not an official weather station.

So these are the official readings taken yesterday,

the top gust at Leek measured at 71mph, strong enough

Calmer today, I'll be back with a forecast later.

A woman has died after two bungalows caught fire in Shropshire.

The alarm was raised at 5.30 this morning.

The emergency services were sent to the development

Two people have been treated for breathing in smoke,

firefighters are searching the building.

A number of animals are thought to have died when a Staffordshire

The front window has been blown out of the home

Local rivalry won't be the only thing at stake

when the players of Wolves and Birmingham City run out

Both teams are still in danger of dropping out

They're joined in that relegation battle

Fair to say, it's not been a great season so far

Steve Bruce got off to a flying start when he took over

at Aston Villa in October but after 16 weeks the emotions

Frustrated, disappointed. I am determined to turn it round. We only

do that by a few results and then quietly going about the rebuilding

job that obviously the team needs. The lower half of the

Championship table makes All four West Midlands sides

are in the bottom ten and looking Gianfranco Zola is certainly under

pressure at Birmingham City. He's won just once in his first 14

games in charge but has been reassured again this week

by the owners. We are working together. Not going

on direction and another. I think the way that the club assessed the

situation shows that there is still unity between us.

Zola's next test comes at Wolves this evening.

Their start to 2017 has been very lopsided with two FA Cup wins

against Premier League opponents stacking up against a run of three

There are still a third of the season to go. 45 points. It is

incredible how many games still left and how many games to play for. I

will not give the play-off up. We will go for it.

Burton Albion may be the lowest ranked of our clubs but in many ways

Expected to struggle if they beat Blackburn this evening

they will be nine points clear of their relegation rivals.

And there's full match build up and commentary on Wolves

against Birmingham City on BBC West Midlands from 19:00 tonight.

against Birmingham City on BBC WM from 19:00 tonight.

I'll have the result and any goals for you in

The Worcester Warriors centre Ben Te'o will make his full England

debut in Sunday's Six-Nations game against Italy.

He'll be joined by four players from Wasps, including James Haskell.

Three weeks ago, Te'o came off the bench to score a late try

at Twickenham to help England beat France by 19 points to 16.

50-years-ago tomorrow, a young footballer from Birmingham

went off to play in the FA Amateur Cup quarterfinal.

It should have been the biggest game of his life,

Tony Allden had only been married five months.

He was 23 years old, when he was killed by lightning

The chances of it happening must be millions to one.

50 years on, even now he's still got painful memories.

Roy Taylor and his elder brother Eric are sharing an emotional return

to their old football club, Highgate United.

We didn't have floodlights in those days.

And even the stand is a big improvement.

It was February 25th 1967 and Highgate were playing Enfield

in the quarterfinals of the FA Amateur Cup.

A record crowd of more than 3,000 had come to watch.

But they had no idea of the tragedy that was about to unfold.

As the game progressed, the rain became

heavier and heavier and it became eerily dark.

The nation settled down to watch the rugby.

This afternoon at Twickenham, the French will be

seeking what could be only their third victory in over 60

Watching TV back home in Kings Heath Birmingham, Roy and

Eric's father Harry Taylor, first learnt of the tragic news.

A very quick line, an amateur cup game is being

played up in Birmingham between Highgate United and Enfield.

Lightning up there has stopped the match.

Both his sons were taken to hospital and treated for shock.

24 hours later, it was announced that their

Highgate United team-mate, Tony Allden, had passed away.

There was a flash and a lot of the players went

One lightning strike and that was it.

Ken Barnett will never forget the horror of that fateful

He has still got fond memories of playing football

A gentle giant of a man who had married his wife, Sue,

He was a good mate of mine and he didn't deserve to have his

News of the tragedy touched the hearts of the nation and

two weeks later, a huge crowd of nearly 30,000 turned out to watch

The proceeds went to help Tony's family, but the Highgate players

were overwhelmed by the occasion and lost 6-0.

And 23 years of age, it was an absolute tragedy.

So at two o'clock tomorrow afternoon before their Midlands Premier League

game with Long Eaton, the Highgate United stand will be

They will unveil a plaque and remember the talented

23-year-old who was killed by lightning exactly 50 years ago.

And Highgate United say anyone's welcome to attend the unveiling

of the renamed Tony Allden Stand tomorrow at 14:00.

The name Nicola Jarvis might not be familiar to you,

Her beautiful embroidery designs and perfect stitching are known

She helped with the exquisite lace detail on Kate

The centuries old craft is enjoying something of a revival

with the younger generation and Nicola's work has become

Sarah Bishop has been to meet her at home in Leamington Spa.

You become completely involved with the thread

just moving up and down the

fabric in a really lovely, rhythmic way.

It takes you into a place where you can

start to think about things, your life.

It's the perfect antidote to the stresses of modern times.

And Nicola Jarvis is so accomplished in the craft of embroidery,

she helped with the most famous dress of the decade.

The lace on Kate Middleton's wedding gown was the result of hours of work

by a team from the Royal School of Needlecraft where Nicola teaches.

Right up until the last minute, no one knew for sure it was for

I was watching the ceremony on TV because of course the whole

nation was gripped by this fabulous event.

And then it was announced, there was on my little settee with

And then when it was announced that we had

been involved and it actually was the dress I'd worked on, I just

It's been giving common garden birds something of a royal makeover that's

Her feathered friends with posh plummage came about by chance.

I was working on a William Morris exhibition and I

thought, well, it would be very appropriate to use some of his

And so I started to Carlos William Morris patterns onto the birds.

The high-street giant John Lewis loved the William Morris

inspired birds so much, they now stock Nicola's designs

Not that everyone can stitch to Nicola's exacting standards,

it's taken 25 years for her to get this good.

In her mid twenties she was one of the royal school's

The key to it all, she says, practice and rhythm.

To lose yourself in the intricacies of an ancient art.

After the storm force winds, some calm and even sunshine.

Rebecca is here with the forecast - anything spring like to look

What a difference a day makes. This picture was taken today in Leak

looking over the hills where that reading was taken yesterday. Let me

tell you it looks very different to that yesterday. The signs of storm

Doris are still there to be seen despite the blue skies. 20 damage

left behind. It has been a pleasant end to the day, right away across

the region. Look close enough, and you will see the of change. The

change tomorrow will be a something a little wet and windy. Not quite as

wet and windy as it will be yesterday. We have weather systems

lined up waiting to get in. See how tightly packed boat is a buzzing...

R. We have got changeable weather to come. Images will fall away

initially, but then we will start to see cloud, wind and rain working

their way in. Temperatures will lift. Five to seven Celsius,

tomorrow morning. Cloudy note early, the rain threatening to work its way

in. Trips and drugs of rain. Plenty of cloud, -- a bit of rain.

Temperatures coming up to 10 Celsius. As we had through the

remainder of tomorrow, you will see that rain band working its way in.

It is taking its time. Some mist patches. That breeze will slowly

drop out. Temperatures getting down to five to again. By contrast to

tomorrow, Sunday is looking good. The best of any brightness is

further east. That rain band threatening to work its way down

from the north. It is likely we set. We will continue with this pattern

with the new working week. Some heavy showers to come, but some

brightness. Cake-a-bake? Yeah.

What is that? It's like bake a cake,

but we flipped it. Oh, my God, we love flipping.

Cake-a-bake. Cake-a-baking. I love it.

I so love it when this happens.